Friday, March 29

UCLA track and field wins shot put with only one thrower cleared to compete


Junior thrower Alyssa Wilson was the lone Bruin competing at the Northern Arizona Friday Night Duals. Wilson ended the night with a first and third place finish in women's shot put and weight throw, respectively. (Andy Bao/Daily Bruin)


In what was supposed to be the opener for Bruin throwers, only one was able to take the field.

UCLA track and field competed in the Northern Arizona Friday Night Duals in Flagstaff, Arizona, on Friday, in the first meet of the season. Junior thrower Alyssa Wilson was the only Bruin woman to travel and had two top-three finishes in the meet.

Five men’s throwers were slated to participate in the shot put and weight throw, including sophomore Jacob Wilson, who finished third and fourth, respectively, in those two events last year. It was also slated to be the season debuts for sophomore Otito Ogbonnia and junior Nate Esparza.

However, when the Bruins arrived at the meet, the men were not cleared to compete, leaving Alyssa Wilson as the only representative for UCLA. The two-time Indoor All-American won both the women’s shot put and weight throw last year at this meet.

This season, Wilson was able to replicate half of that feat. She won the shot put with a mark of 16.85 meters, a half-meter better than second place Samantha Noennig of Arizona State. Wilson and Noennig ended as the top two for the second straight year, although both saw their marks fall compared to last year’s meet.

Wilson did not repeat as the weight-throw champion, finishing third behind Arizona State’s Kaylee Antill and Shelby Moran. The UCLA thrower notched an 18.97-meter distance on her first try, but fouled on her next five attempts to fall to third.

Wilson’s final mark of 62 feet and three inches fell well below her indoor best of 72 feet and 11.25 inches, set last year at the Don Kirby Collegiate Elite Invitational.

The Bruins will compete next at the UW Indoor Preview in Seattle on Saturday.

Alumnus

Perez was the Sports editor for the 2020-2021 school year. He was previously an assistant Sports editor for the men's volleyball, women's water polo and track and field beats during the 2019-2020 school year and a staff writer on the gymnastics, beach volleyball, women's water polo and men's water polo beats.


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